Passionate about investing in people and the community. CEO of @mortgageboxnv. Love my family, #crossfit and travel. Always looking to collaborate!

May 12, 2017

10 things I’ve learned after 10 years in business

It’s been 10 years since I opened the doors of Raintree…

My company, Raintree Mortgage, has a lot of exciting changes on the horizon and I’ve done a lot of reflecting recently over everything I learned from 10 years of running and growing my own company.

When I started Raintree over a decade ago, I knew I wanted to build something bigger than myself. I wanted to build a company that would have an impact on my employees, my partners and the larger community that I serve here in Vegas.

I wanted to take a moment here and share with you my 10 biggest learnings during this time:

Operate from a point of value, not money: I love this quote from Zig Ziglar: “You can have everything you want in life, if you help other people get what they want.” Never make a decision based solely on financial gain. ALWAYS do what’s in the best interest of the client, and the rest will follow.

Stop complaining: Problems are your friends. Embrace them. You are 100% in charge of your life. There is no such thing as “not having enough time.” We all have the same amount of time. It’s about what we’re choosing to prioritize. You control your time!

Invest (and reinvest) in your business: Focus on what you love and delegate the rest, even if that means delaying a salary bump for yourself. This is the only sustainable way to be happy and to scale. The other way I invest in my business is through doubling down on anything that works — don’t miss out on opportunities to grow when something hits!

Invest (and reinvest) in yourself: Your health is the health of your company, and it’s important to lead by example. Physically, never sacrifice your health, working out and eating clean. Mentally, surround yourself with highly motivated individuals and consider finding a mentor.

Be adaptable: Successful leaders have the ability to see around the corner and to embrace change. Nothing in this world is static, so learning to move with the flow and the changes are key to success.

Be a learning machine: If you’re not learning, you’re going to get left behind. Investing in your education is ongoing — you will never reach a point of having learned everything, so make learning an ongoing and integrated part of your life.

Be selective about who you hire/partner with: For me, that means working with team players and people with the same level of integrity who share the same core values with me. If this isn’t in alignment with the people you’re surrounded by, your business won’t be in alignment.

Patience is key: It takes years to build a successful business — behind every single “overnight success” is someone who spent years grinding. Enjoy the process and have patience!

Hustle: At the end of the day, hard work ALWAYS trumps talent. Consistent hard work WILL pay off!

Have fun: Remember, it’s about the journey, not the destination!

My hope is for the next 10 years to be filled with the opportunity to bring more value to my employees, my partners, my clients and my community.

Please follow along on Medium as I go through this next phase of growth!